Anchor.



No. 703,739. I Patented July I, I902.

,I. E. RECH.

ANGHUR.

(Application filed In. 6, 1902.)

(No Model.)

Jwwl- Qua/{1 WITN'ESSES: INVENTOR:

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JACOB EDWIN RECH, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

ANCHOR- SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 703,739, datedJuly 1, 1902. Application filed March 6I 1902. Serial No. 96,933. (Nomodelfi To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, Moms EDWIN REcII, a

citizen of the United States, residing in the city and county ofPhiladelphia, in the State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new.and useful Improvements in Anchors, of which the following is aspecification.

In the most generally accepted'form of anchor, the stock and fluke arearranged at the respective ends of the shank, transversely with respectthereto, and approximately perpendicular with respect to each other.This arrangement possesses in operation advantages of definite andestablished value.

When, however, an anchor of this type is out of action and rests uponthe hull of avessel, the angular relationship of the stock and flukecauses it to take up an excessive amount of space, and renders it veryliable to become entangled with the various objects in its vicinity, andto interfere with the movements of the occupants of the vessel.

It is the object of my invention to provide an anchor which, whilecharacterized when in use by the angular relationship of the stock andfluke described, is, nevertheless, so arranged as to be adapted to be,when out of use, readily reduced to compact form.

More specifically, it is the object of my invention to provide ananchor, the shank and fluke of which are fixedly engaged the one withthe other, and the stock of which is adapted, when the anchor is out ofuse, to be moved downward along said shank to a position in which it isin the plane of the fluke, the shank, to such end, embodying a spiralcurvature intermediate of its length over which the stock moves and bywhich it is rotated,-and, in connection with such structure, a means forsecuring a cable or the like to the stock, in such manner that the cablemay in elevating the anchor receive the weight of the anchor at a pointabove and in line with the shank, and which means at the same time willnot interfere with the movements of the stock up or down the shank.

In the drawings I show, and herein I describe, a good form of aconvenient embodiment of my invention. Other embodiments may, of course,be resorted to at will, without departure from the spirit of myinvention.

In the drawings,

Figure 1 is a view in perspective of an anchor embodying the preferredform of myinvention. In this view the stock is shown as occupying on theshanka position slightly below the head thereof.

Figure 2 is a view in side elevation of the anchor of Figure 1, with thestock in its position of coincidence with the plane of the fluke and incontact with said fluke, this being the compacted position of the parts.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

In the accompanying drawings,

a indicates the shank of an anchor, 1) its fluke, and 0 its stock. Thefluke b and shank a, are, in the preferred form, conveniently arrangedin fixed relationship in any usual manner. The body of the shank is ofselected non-circular transverse section, preferably quadrangular, andthe stock a is provided with an eye 01 of profile corresponding to thesection of the shank, and fitting snugly thereon. An enlargement or head6 at the upper end of the shank prevents the withdrawal of the shankfrom the eye.

The shank embodies, intermediate of its length, a quarter turn orspiral, f, of slow pitch, produced in any desired manner, andconstituting what may be termed a spiral conformation of the shank.

g is a clevis of any preferred form, to which may be secured the usualrope or cable. The clevis instead of being secured to the shank as hasbeen usual in prior constructions of anchors is hingedly or pivotallyattached directly to the stock, that is to say said clevis I has eyesh'which embrace and are free for rotative movement upon said stock, saideyes being arranged on opposite sides of the shank so that the bight ofthe clevis will exist over and in line with the sh ank, with the resultthat in the elevation of the'shank by its cable, the point of attachmentof the cable to the clevis will be immediately over the shank. By theattachment of the clevis'to the stock, the pull or drag of the rope orcable causes, when the anchor is dropped, the movement of the stock awayfrom the fluke, and to the upper end of the shank so that the parts areimmediately restored to operative position.

The clevis, being as stated, hingedly or pivotally connected to thestock, may in stowing the anchor, be thrown to one side of the stock, soas not to interfere with the movement thereof downward along the shank.As a further result of the arrangement described, when the stock hasbeen moved down the shank the clevis exists at the side of said shank,and the net length of the structure as a whole is reduced, therebyrendering it more compact and easily stowed.

The relation of the stock to the shank is such that when the stock is atthe upper end of the shank it extends transversely to said shank atright angles, approximately, to the plane of the fluke.

\Vhen, however, said stock is caused to slide downward along said shank,the relation between its eye and the shank is such that, in passing overthe region of spiral conformation, said region imparts to said eye andstock a quarter rotation or turn, which brings said stock intoapproximate coincideuce with the plane of the fluke, with the resultthat when said stock reaches the lower end of the shank, it will be inthe plane thereof, and its respective ends may rest upon the respectiveends of the fluke.

The structure thus formed may obviously be much more compactly stowedwithin a vessel than is possible with an anchor the stock of which isfixed at right angles with the fluke. \Vhen the anchor is thrownoverboard, the drag or traction exerted by its rope or cable is receiveddirectly by the stock, hence the shank, by reason of its own weight andthat of the fluke, will slide through the eye of the stock, and in sosliding, a rotation between the stock on the one hand, and the shank andfluke on the other, the reverse of that already described, and carryingthe stock to a position at right angles to the plane of the fluke, willoccur, and hence the fluke and stock will, when the anchor is calledinto service, automatically adjust themselves to the right angularrelationship or set in which the structure is best adapted to do itsWork. Both rotative movements referred to are practically automatic, as,in the casting of the anchor overboard, the Weight of the fluke andshank causes them to slide with respect to the retarded stock, while, onthe other hand, when the structure is lifted within the vessel andrested in vertical position with its fluke upon the deck or bottom, thestock will by gravity descend into proximity to the fluke, rotating asit descends.

I show the shank as of quadrangular section. I do not, of course, limitmyself to such form, as the sliding relation between the shank and themovable member may be arranged in any such manner and form as will leavethe movable member free to move longitudinally of said shank, but willlimit its rotation to that due to a spiral or kindred formationidentified with the body of the shank.

In referring herein to the plane of the fluke I allude to the planeprojected upon its longer axis and in approximate coincidence with theaxis of the shank.

Having thus described my invention, I claim An anchor having a shank, afluke rigidly connected thereto, said shank being of noncircular sectionand embodying a spiral conformation, a stock, having an eye extendingvertically clear through it and adapted to said shank, said stock beingfree for longitudinal movement with respect to said shank to a positionin close proximity to the fluke, and arranged to be rotated, in slidingdownward over said spiral conformation, to a position in the plane ofthe fluke, and in sliding upward, to a position approximatelyperpendicular to the plane of the fluke, and being maintained in-alladjustments in perpendicular relation to said shank, and a clevisadapted to be engaged by a cable, the respective side members of whichclevis are engaged with the stock on opposite sides of the shank, thearrangement being such that said clevis has lateral swing or movementwith respect to the stock with the result that said clevis when thestock is at the upper end of the shank may extend in line above theshank, and may, when the stock is to be moved down the shank, be thrownto one side to clear the shank.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as myinvention I have hereuntosigned my name this 4th day of March, A. D. 1902.

JACOB EDXVIN RECH.

In presence of S. SALOME BROOKE, THos. K. LANCASTER.

